Leinster v Northampton LIVE stream, score updates and more from Champions Cup semi-final

Leinster take on Northampton Saints this evening in the semi-final of the Investec Champions Cup.

Today's game will kick-off at Croke Park at 5.30pm.

RTE and TNT Sports will be showing live coverage of the match, and you can follow play-by-play updates in our live blog below.

Leinster team

15. Ciaran Frawley, 14. Jordan Larmour, 13. Robbie Henshaw, 12. Jamie Osborne, 11. James Lowe, 10. Ross Byrne, 9. Jamison Gibson-Park; 1. Andrew Porter, 2. Dan Sheehan, 3. Tadhg Furlong, 4. Ross Molony, 5. Joe McCarthy, 6. Ryan Baird, 7. Josh van der Flier, 8. Caelan Doris.

Replacements: 16. Ronan Kelleher, 17. Cian Healy, 18. Michael Ala'alatoa, 19. Jason Jenkins, 20. Jack Conan, 21. Luke McGrath, 22. Harry Byrne, 23. Jimmy O'Brien.

Northampton team

15. George Furbank, 14. James Ramm, 13. Tommy Freeman, 12. Fraser Dingwall, 11. George Hendy, 10. Fin Smith, 9. Alex Mitchell; 1. Alex Waller, 2. Curtis Langdon, 3. Trevor Davison, 4. Alex Moon, 5. Alex Coles, 6. Courtney Lawes, 7. Sam Graham, 8. Juarno Augustus.

Replacements: 16. Sam Matavesi, 17. Emmanuel Iyogun, 18. Elliot Millar Mills, 19. Temo Mayanavanua, 20. Angus Scott-Young, 21. Tom James, 22. Tom Litchfield, 23. Tom Seabrook.

16:21Oisin DohertyJames Lowe can't believe Bilbao blowout his only time to celebrate a Leinster Champions Cup triumph

“We were in a bakery at nine o’clock in the morning and we weren’t having croissants!

"That was a cracker of a day in Bilbao. The boys performed so well. There are photos of the day.

"Who was it, Fards, Jack and James Ryan? There is a famous one of them going for the charge-down on the drop goal attempt right at the end.

"That sticks in my memory like there’s no tomorrow. Hopefully one day there will be memories of an effort by us in a final that leads to us winning it."

Read more from James Lowe here.

ShareComments16:19Oisin DohertyLeinster fans on their way to Croke ParkLeinster fans Dan Farnan and Lee Mooney ahead of the game (Image: Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne)ShareComments16:10Oisin DohertyLeinster v Northampton Saints: Three key Croke Park battles

ROSS BYRNE V FIN SMITH

The Leinster out-half produced arguably his best-ever display against La Rochelle and Byrne, who looks to have finally stepped out of Johnny Sexton's shadow, will need to be at that level again.

JAMISON GIBSON-PARK V ALEX MITCHELL

This pair have met as recently as March, when Mitchell's England got the better of Gibson-Park's Ireland at Twickenham. Mitchell is fundamental to the Saints' effective attacking game.

COURTNEY LAWES V RYAN BAIRD

The evergreen Lawes is a massive influence in defence and attack - even standing at first or second receiver when the time is right. He is dying to leave the Saints for Brive with a domestic and European double secured. Baird is having some season at Test and club level and here is the ultimate test for him on the big stage.

Read more here.

ShareCommentsOisin DohertyGood afternoon

Hello everybody and welcome to our live coverage of Leinster's Champions Cup semi-final clash with Northampton Saints.

Croke Park is the venue for today's game as GAA HQ hosts its first rugby match for 14 years and its first club rugby game since the infamous 2009 semi-final clash between Leinster and Munster.

That game introduced a young Johnny Sexton to the masses and arguably kickstarted the golden generation of Irish rugby.

For Leinster fans, they won't mind if today doesn't usher in a new era of the sport. All they want is a win and a chance to right the wrongs of the past two seasons and finally add a fifth star to the famous blue shirt.

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